The Environmental Protection Agency could potentially turn thousands of people into criminals overnight if its newest proposal to reduce greenhouse gases becomes law.

These unfortunate future outlaws are racing enthusiasts who drive their modified road cars on race tracks. The specific language in question in the bill is as follows:

“Certified motor vehicles and motor vehicle engines and their emission control devices must remain in their certified configuration even if they are used solely for competition or if they become non-road vehicles or engines; anyone modifying a certified motor vehicle or motor vehicle engine for any reason is subject to the tampering and defeat device prohibitions of paragraph (a)(3) of this section and 42 U.S.C.”

From reading this, it appears the EPA is out to stop all would-be racers from making any kind of modification that would tamper with, or have an effect on, the emissions coming out of a car’s tailpipes. Until now, there were specific provisions that permitted purpose-built racecars to be exempted from traditional emissions regulations. This law would change that.

The proposed change, which was uncovered by the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA), was tucked away deep inside a document hundreds of pages long. SEMA represents thousands of tuners and aftermarket parts companies across the United States, so making sure everyone is aware of this proposed change is a part of its job.

But this law will really deal a major blow to people involved in grassroots racing. Nearly everyone in the enthusiast and racing community modifies their car to a certain extent because we like to race and compete with others on the track. Taking this right away would actually destroy a chunk of our economy. SEMA represents an aftermarket industry worth $36 billion, so if the EPA intends to eliminate their reason for existing, then many people’s livelihoods would be in jeopardy.

The entire point of the law is to reduce emissions, yet if this law were enforced, it would be like eliminating a cup of water from the ocean. The entire fleet of cars designed for road use is what the EPA should be focusing on, since that’s what really contributes to global climate change. All this law accomplishes is infuriating a group of people who would have gone on with their passion and sport without issue.

Rahul Chamarthi, a grassroots racing participant, said, when asked about the proposed legislation, “By doing this, they’re taking away something that makes our country what it is. Racing is an American tradition, and it’s so wrong of the government to try and regulate it away.”

Even though this regulation could go down in the books, enforcement looks as though it might be shaky. As of now, it’s illegal to modify your engine or exhaust to something different than what came from the factory that adversely effects emissions, but that doesn’t stop people from doing it. Many states across the country don’t have any kind of system in place to stop people from driving their cars without a catalytic converter, so if we all felt like it, we could all break the law.

Since the EPA really has no way of enforcing the current laws, it’s questionable whether or not they’d have the power to stop people from breaking this new one.

Our government has a habit of doing things similar to this in the past without success. Just last year, several manufacturers tried to lobby Congress to pass a law that would prohibit people from tampering with the software in a car’s computer.

Every new car today has a master computer that controls everything in the car. Manufacturers wanted this law to be passed because it would have eliminated the consumer’s right to work on their own car, forcing them to bring it into an official dealership instead. Thankfully, it didn’t pass.

Even if these currently proposed “competition restrictions” don’t end up being enforced, it puts racing in peril because it gives the government a legal right to stop people from making racecars. All those that care about the long and storied tradition of American motorsports should take action and oppose this regulation with everything they have. My car isn’t a “track only” racecar yet, but someday it will be, and I certainly don’t want to be barred from competition by a law that helps virtually nothing.

Zac Palmer is a sophomore magazine journalism major. His column appears weekly in Pulp. He can be reached at zipalmer@syr.edu.

Published on April 17, 2016 at 8:36 pm